


Welcome Back

by Lafeae



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, One-Sided Relationship, Pre-Relationship, Whump, Writing Exercise, post-dsod
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:21:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26912815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lafeae/pseuds/Lafeae
Summary: After the pod crash lands, Jounouchi visits Kaiba in the hospital and gets personal.
Relationships: Jounouchi Katsuya | Joey Wheeler/Kaiba Seto
Comments: 16
Kudos: 59





	Welcome Back

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this real quick while waiting for a car to get serviced. Challenge time for me. 
> 
> This is a reaction to a Tumblr picture titled 'welcome back'.

Sitting across from Kaiba Seto, on any regular occasion, would have been enough to make Jounouchi's skin crawl. It was a recipe for insta-argument. Like they could take a breath and, when they exhaled, only obscenities came out. The air was charged; they were consistently seconds from disaster, but Jounouchi fought with himself on whether it was anger or fear. The very essence of Kaiba Seto, his very being, shook part of Jounouchi's foundation. His stomach juices curdled. He felt ill and wrong, and he didn't want to look at the bastard for more than six seconds. 

But he'd sat across from Kaiba for a quarter of an hour, quiet, and never looked away. 

There was satisfaction at looking at train wrecks, he guessed. And Kaiba was the ultimate train wreck. It was also possible that he could stand being around Kaiba because they were in a neutral place: Domino City Hospital. It was a private room, sure, but who got mad at people in hospitals? 

The fact was, there was no one more pitiful on the face of the Earth than Kaiba. Laid up in a hospital bed, bruised and bandaged, with his neck in a hard collar. His expression was sharp and foreboding, almost in spite of his injuries. He seemed to pretend no one was there and nothing was wrong. No hello when Jounouchi and Yuugi entered. No thank you when Yuugi left him a card and a small wrapped gift. No goodbye when Yuugi left. He kept his attention on the laptop set up over his knees, but he'd spent most of the time holding onto the table it balanced on. 

Jounouchi balled up fistfuls of his trousers. "So...welcome back," he finally said. 

Kaiba's brows raised a micrometer. "Is that all?" he rasped. 

"I dunno." 

"You're still sitting there." 

"Just...watchin' ya." Jounouchi unclenched his fists. And his jaw. And his body. He slid down in the chair. "Surprised you're okay, since that was a helluva crash landin'. News called it a 'crash and burn' y'know?" 

"I'm aware." 

"It was pretty crazy. You could see the smoke for miles." 

"Why are you here?" Kaiba asked, and it sounded like he was trying to snarl, but he couldn't. He just sounded sad. 

"To watch ya, like I said." 

"I don't need your pity, mutt." 

"Oh, I ain't pityin' ya." Jounouchi spun a button on his coat. "I'm enjoyin' this."

Kaiba frowned. A bruise made it go all the way down his jaw. "Get out." 

"Make me." 

Kaiba reached down, wincing as he felt around the bed. 

"Are ya gonna be able to use that satellite anymore? Or did it all break?" Jounouchi asked. 

Kaiba's reach didn't go any further than he could stretch out his arm. He didn't try to lean forward.

"Did ya see the Pharaoh? I know Yuugi won't ask, but he's got his peace. That's what he says. And Mokuba told him that's what you were tryin' to do when the pod hit the ground or whatever. So we gotta know if ya seen him or not. Maybe you can tell Yuug'." Jounouchi shrugged. "Or I can. I kinda know you won't." 

Kaiba fingered the phone by his knee, but it slipped further down the blanket. His arm hit the bed, dejected, but he didn't show any displeasure. 

"Did ya?" Jounouchi pressed. 

"Did I what?" 

"See the Pharoah?"

Kaiba's lips curled. "Briefly."

"Was it worth it? All this?" 

"Yes. And if you had any capacity to comprehend complex human emotions, you would have done it, too."

Jounouchi stood and went over to Kaiba. He leaned against the railing, holding back from cussing Kaiba out. The curdling began again. 

"Y'know...I like ya. I really do, 'cept when ya talk. I have since like...first year." Jounouchi squeezed the railing until it squeaked. "Its kinda nice to see ya like this, taken down a notch, but I've been fightin' with myself because it hurts, too. Who wants to see the person they like hurt, even if they deserve it?" 

"You're insane."

"Prolly. I've thought that to myself a few times, because I'm not a homo 'cept when I look at you. It sucks."

Kaiba reached up and grabbed Jounouchi's wrist. The blond could have backed away, Kaiba moved slow, but he didn't. The executive's weak and variable grip, the bandage on his index finger that scrapped across Jounouchi's wrist, was worth feeling. 

"You gonna be able to walk?" Jounouchi asked. 

"What does it matter to you, mutt?" 

"Wanna make sure you can kick my ass properly when the time comes."

Kaiba scoffed. His thumbnail dug into Jounouchi's wrist. "That and more, you cretin."

Jounouchi smiled. That was enough, he was going to barf if he stayed around Kaiba much longer. "Hopefully all this helps sort your feelings out," Jounouchi said. "Since ya saw the Pharoah and everythin'. Whenever ya do, get it sorted out I mean, come an' see me." He picked up the phone and pressed it into Kaiba's palm. "Welcome back, Kaib'. Get well soon, huh?" 

**Author's Note:**

> Welp that was my weird whump drabble. Tell me what you think!


End file.
